As the saying goes, “beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder”. While this might be true, the saying holds little or no water in today’s world. Gone are the days where you would wake up, take a shower, and simply put on your office suite without accessing your general appearance. Today, more people are embracing the need to not only look smart but ensure that their overall beauty is at its best.

Take for example a piece of clothing such as socks. It may seem to have little or no impact on your overall beauty. Well, you are totally wrong. Socks play a crucial role in ensuring that you match your clothes to get an opulent look.

Thanks to websites such as custom weekend socks, you can order top-notch socks that can complement your overall look. This website has been in the market for quite some time now and it is well versed in the craft of producing socks of the best quality at a friendly price. The best thing, however, is that you can design your socks to uniquely fit your desires.

As with socks, your skin also needs the best attention. This means treating it from any form of the disease that may tarnish your look. Remember that the skin is the biggest organ in the body. So, there are many diseases that can be associated with your skin.

Even so, dark spots are quite common today. Although they shouldn’t be a big concern since they do not necessarily need treatment, most people opt to get rid of them due to various cosmetics reasons. But have you any idea of the symptoms and causes of dark spots? Read along to find out.

Symptoms

When it comes to symptoms of dark spots, [there is basically very little to look out for. First, it’s of utmost importance to note that dark spots on the skin can vary from dark brown to light brown. They don’t have a distinct color due to different skin tones. However, one big characteristic you may notice is that they are often dark spots that are painless.

Additionally, dark spots on the skin can vary depending on the size. Some may be as small as the size of the tip of a ballpoint pen while others can be as big as the size of a thumb. Even so, contrary to common belief, dark spots don’t only appear on the face. They can develop on any part of the body. However, they are most commonly found on the face due to exposure to the sun.

It’s important to note that dark spots on people with darker skin, a spot that is a bit darker than the actual shade of the skin usually fades away pretty fast- between 6 to 12 months. This is not the case with people with a lighter skin complexion since a deeper coloration can take months if not years to completely fade away.

Causes

As stated above, dark spots aren’t serious and do not necessarily need any form of treatment. However, this does not mean that you should ignore what causes dark spots on the skin. By having in-depth knowledge of what causes dark spots, you will then have a better chance of avoiding them.

1. Sun damage

Sun is believed to be one of the main causes of dark spots on the skin. They are also known as liver spots, solar lentigines or sunspots. Basically, you can develop dark spots on your skin by exposing your skin for a long period to direct sunlight or tanning beds.

Due to this, you can expect to see dark spots on areas that are more often exposed to the sun such as the face, arms, and hands.

2. Hormonal Changes

When it comes to hormonal changes, a very small percentage of it causes dark spots on the skin. This is because hormonal changes often lead to a skin condition known as Melasma. Once the condition heals off, it leaves behind numerous patches, that develop to be dark spots.

Although this skin condition is quite rare, it is common in women, especially during pregnancy.

3. Side Effects of Medications

As more people are looking to increase their skin beauty, they often tend to choose aesthetic medications to solve this problem. While this might be one of the ways to quickly do away with dark spots on your skin, some medications can have serious side effects on your skin.

Some medications that increase skin pigmentation have been known to cause dark spots once the skin has been lightened up. Additionally, you can expect to develop dark spots after using drugs such as tetracyclines and psychotropic drugs.

4. Wound Healing

Wounds are a common occurrence. You probably have been wounded at one stage or another in your life. There are many causes of wounds, and while some can be avoided, others cannot. Even so, once you are wounded, it may take some time, depending on the severity of the wound to completely heal. Once the wound heals, it most often leaves behind a dark spot. The size of the spot will often depend on the initial size of the wound.

5. Diabetes

Diabetes is a common disease in the 21st century. This can be attributed to the way of living including the foods that people ingest daily.

But did you know that some conditions associated with diabetes can actually cause your skin to darken? Such conditions include acanthosis, which is known to cause shin spots, diabetic dermopathy and darkened velvety skin.